In 2003, the average aid budget of wealthy countries was just 0.25% of national income, and just 0.14% for the US.

The report, Paying the Price, says this means that development goals agreed on recently by all members of the United Nations - halving poverty, providing education for all and halting the spread of major diseases - are unlikely to be met.

"Making this finance available... is a both a moral obligation and a matter of justice," it says.

Oxfam says that aid initiatives work, and that millions of children are in school in countries such as Kenya and Zambia, for example, who would not be there if not for aid.

It also claims that aid is being used as a political tool, with some nations making combating terrorism an explicit aim of their aid programmes.

HAVE YOUR SAY

Of course the debt should be cancelled and fair trade mechanisms put in place too